Music Industry Market – How much did you make after releasing an album?

The Music industry market is a rough one. It gets even worse in this day of the new music business where the percentages that are being taken or kept are just as high as they used to be, but the revenues are much much lower.

After releasing an album or even for that matter before a release, it is crucial to make sure you got the right deal going on. Whether with a label, investors, management or an agent, you have to look at the big picture and understand what it is going to take not only to be making it in music according to your terms, but also making the money you are hoping to see.

Spending like crazy or not spending enough in areas like music marketing are going to bite you in the ass and cost you a fortune.

The best answer is a solid plan and clear understanding across the board. Know what has to be made so you can actually make money or be clear on who is being paid what till you can get paid. The better an understanding, the better decisions you can make along the way to save money that doesn’t need to be spent or allocate money to the right places in marketing to make those sales go up.

Its a tricky business, but you can navigate your way to success in the music industry market of today.

L

Loren Weisman is an accomplished music producer, author and music consultant. He is the author of “The Artist’s Guide to Success in the Music Business”, a book to help independent artists, musicians, bands, labels and managers achieve self sufficient and sustainable success. For more info on Loren and music consulting services, visit: http://www.lorenweisman.com

Never been done – Are you really the first? Online marketing tips for independent musicians

Artists and bands send emails a great deal that explain how no one is doing what they are doing. They either sound like no one and have a totally new or original sound or they are doing something that no one has ever done before.

I can not think of a single artist that has shown me something to prove that to be a fact….ever.

Its not that they aren’t putting their own spin on their music. Maybe they are mixing up some some different styles and some different sounds that most are unaware of, but as David Foster was quoted, “it has all been done before, we are just working to find a different way to present, alter and embellish.” Even with the innovators, there was a base of someone that came before, you just have to dig a little deeper.

One of my favorite things to do when I was drumming was to learn about my favorite drummers influences. I got to get a sense of who they were inspired by and tried to both emulate as well as create off of.

In marketing though, It comes down to sometimes being too close to something for too long or maybe you are just not familiar with the others that have come before you.

The best solution and some very solid online marketing tips for musicians when it comes to the never been done or never been done before vibe is to use other descriptive words.

When you present to the music industry or music business professionals that can help you the claim that what you have is brand spanking new or never been done, you are setting your self up for failure as well as saying something that thousands of others have said and have been proved wrong on the spot.

Even if you have done something that is only a little similar to something else, you may have hurt your chances with the contact, connection or person you are telling this to. In music advertising, it is a good idea to compare and contrast with some one or something out there to give someone a basic idea first. They are going to read about you more often first before they actually hear or see you, so set the stage for them to say how different you are, instead of making an over saturated statement that too many make and immediately can turn people off or away from what you are doing.

Every time I hear some one say its never been done before, I always think of that Robin Williams skit about Golf where it does have some funny similarities to other sports, but Robin goes on a hilarious rant about the game. I would love to see some band say something along the lines of below when being compared to others. Hell, that could be a funny skit for a band to do on YouTube in reaching out to their audience.

Here is the transcript.

“And only they could invent a sport like golf.

Here’s my idea for a fucking sport.

I knock a ball in a gopher hole.

- Like pool? – Fuck off pool.

Not with a straight stick, with a little fucked up stick.

I whack a ball, it goes in a gopher hole.

- Oh, you mean like croquet? – Fuck croquet!

I put the hole hundreds of yards away.

Oh, fuck of ya ! Big fun, yeah!

- Oh, like a bowling thing? – Fuck no!

Not straight. I put shit in the way.

Like trees and bushes and high grass.

So you can lose you fucking ball.

And go hacking away with a fucking tire iron.

Whacking away, and each time you miss you feel like you’ll have a stroke.

Fuck that’s what we’ll call it, a stroke,

cause each time you miss you feel like you’re gonna fucking die.

Oh great, oh and here’s the better part. Fuck, this is brilliant!

Right near the end, I’ll put a little flat piece

with a little flag to give you fucking hope.

But then I’ll put a little pool and a sand box,

to fuck with your ball again.

Ay, you’ll be there cracking you ass, jacking away in the sand.

- And you do this one time? – Fuck no!

fucking times!

That’s my idea of a sport!

The manly sport of golf,”

Robin Williams

- Catch the video here….. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDQd49rEF_0

L

Loren Weisman is an accomplished music producer, author and music consultant. He is the author of “The Artist’s Guide to Success in the Music Business”, a book to help independent artists, musicians, bands, labels and managers achieve self sufficient and sustainable success. For more info on Loren and music consulting services, visit: http://www.lorenweisman.com

Bad business decisions – basing your music business plan on celebrity gossip and rumors or other half ass facts.

Stupid assumptions and the music business go hand in hand. I have found that more people seem to know more about the music industry based off of rumors, half truths, gossip or older information than many other business and entertainment fields out there.

Apparently, with out any experience, knowledge or understanding, you have hundred of people calling themselves experts.

It gets much worse when some one makes decisions based off of old truths, gossip, music industry news presented for a poor or unreliable source or just going off on what some one told you that holds no reference, backup or proof. That is setting you up to make some really really bad business decisions.

As a music consultant, I have heard people in consulting sessions tell me how this works and how that works. I have even been told information about things that happened in the studio on albums that I was on and present in that particular studio for. Whats worse is when I said, flat out, I was there, as in, I was present and that didn’t happen the way you describe. I have had a person who fired back at me telling me I was wrong. That was special. it also ended the conversation right then and there.

Anybody can have a blog, anybody can start a rumor, whether it be in entertainment, politics, or any other field. To those that are smart and want to make better decisions in what they choose to believe, those people will look at the whole story as well as the sources they are getting it from.

A solid music industry analysis of any concept, any truth or any fact that you will want to apply in to your music business plan is going to have to consist of fact checking, backing whatever you are hearing up with proof of that concept or if it is something new, show the trends and the numbers to support those concepts.

You have to use common sense and you have to dig in beyond the exciting celebrity goose and rumors, the overbought success stories and the examples that worked 10, 15, 25 years ago but may not be and are more than likely no where near as effective now.

In many music consulting sessions, I hear people say, “well so and so said it is this way” or “I saw this article that said this was true” or I visited this website that showed these numbers.”

COME ON!!!! Do you want to be that easy to fool or do you want to be the fool sharing half ass half truths?

Just because someone has some numbers up, where did they come from? It is your responsibility to ask that question, even more so if you are going to put time, money or a plan behind that!!!!

Everything I write in my blogs, everything I talk about in my videos, everything I discuss in my book, go look it up for your self. Yes, there is flat out facts, but there is also trends and assumptions, but they are assumptions and best guesses based on years of experience, a shit ton of research and proof of concept! I also stand strongly behind the words… I DONT KNOW! I have found that I have been able to build stronger trust and better relationships with clients, because when I state something or lay it out, I back it up and if I am not one hundred percent sure, I will say, flat out…I don’t know.

Humility, truth and honor build trust, dont try to claim to know what you don’t. On the same coin, you can give a best guess, but if you don’t know, say you don’t know.

It is your responsibility to decide what you deem to be true or not. It is your responsibility to ask questions, do the back up research and find out more. it is your responsibility to decide what is reputable and what isn’t in the end. And it is WORLDS better to not make stupid assumptions, claim to know things you don’t or take information at face value with out first checking it out through a series of channels.

Especially if you are going to go and repost it yourself….

Cause just because hundreds of websites and thousands of social media people said Jon Bon Jovi was dead, that didn’t make it true did it?

L

Loren Weisman is an accomplished music producer, author and music consultant. He is the author of “The Artist’s Guide to Success in the Music Business”, a book to help independent artists, musicians, bands, labels and managers achieve self sufficient and sustainable success. For more info on Loren and music consulting services, visit: http://www.lorenweisman.com